Svobodnaya Rossiya
The Soviet Socialist Republic of Svobodnaya Rossiya (also Свободная Россиская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респу́блика; English: Soviet Socialist Republic of Free Russia) is a Communist state of the Soviet Union on the Baltic Coast, founded in September of 2008. Its capital city is Kaliningrad, which may also be referred to as Königsberg. Its national anthem is the "Hymn of the Motherland", adapted from the 1977 version of the former Soviet national anthem. Its national army march is "Let's Go" (also Солдаты, в поход). History The Constitution and Septembrist Revolution left | thumb | The House of the Convention of the People in Kaliningrad, now a museum.The state was formed during a period of political unrest in the Baltic states at an event now known as the Convention of the People. A semi-secret meeting was arranged at just before midnight on 26 November 2008 in a house provided by an anonymous member of the conspirators. At least 42 signatures were applied to the final revision of the Svobodnayan constitution, some of them unattributed; five military officers, most notably Lieutenant Ivan I. Komarov, primary author of the constitution, then-Captain Katiya D. Rychenko, then-Captain Sergei Lazutkin, Viktor Tymoshenko and Feodor Tartakovsky. The document declared a sovereign state, established territorial boundaries, governmental principles and organization, plans for a standing army, and contained a series of annexes concerning civil and political rights. Ivan Komarov was appointed Commissar and temporarily given emergency powers for a duration of 30 days. During 27-29 September, the provisional Red Army secured the new capital city of Kaliningrad and surrounding territory, encountering little resistance and incurring no recorded injuries or loss of life. The General Council of Svobodnaya Rossiya first convened on Thursday, 2 October, and was at the time effectively a mass referendum consisting of leadership and the public. The Council's first acts were to establish civil order and begin cleanup of damage caused by rioting, lack of utilities and general attrition caused by public unrest prior to the state's formation and temporary martial control. The constitution was revised for the first time during the council's 16-30 October session, its second meeting and first official session, consisting of approximately 200 delegates determined to be "leaders of the local populace" and chosen from varying urban and rural regions based on their demonstrated leadership during the initial reconstruction. Amendments finalized the number of members of the Council, established police and other safety and public services, created departments of the government to deal with finances, oversight of development and public works, the military, education, and other immediate concerns. The national flag, consisting of red and white fields and a hammer and sickle with a single star, was designed during this session, and the 1977 Soviet national anthem was adapted and adopted as the official national hymn. Stabilization Development was slow for the first several months of the state's existence, caused primarily by the poor condition and lack of maintenance on railroads, highways and utility-related infrastructure. The immediate need to concentrate resources on primary urban areas compounded a slow recovery in smaller towns and rural areas, necessitating rations on fresh agricultural products and grain-based foods. Tubers such as potatoes became the primary source of nourishment for the population until foreign aid received in the 2008-09 winter allowed the necessary work to be done to reconnect these areas. The special Revolutionary Committee consisting of several members of the General Council officially declared the nation's utilities and transportation to be "adequate to the needs of the people" in June of 2009, a month which also saw the refitting and reactivation of the Kursk Nuclear Power Station, which until recently provided approximately 30% of the state's electricity. On 12 August, the national rail and mass transit system was opened, consisting of major rail lines connecting urban centers, two subway systems, bus routes in densely populated areas, and two airports. The Red Leaves Conflict Initial Action right | thumb | T-55 tanks return from the 2009 Red Leaves Conflict.On 9 August of 2009, an internal coup occured in the nation of Gradoslavia, bordering Svobodnaya Rossiya on its northwestern quarter. The younger brother of then-President Victor Ilyushin, Alexei Ilyushin, seized control of the national government for unknown reasons, backed by radical sectors of the citizenry and military. The President was ousted and detained while the conspirators assumed control by martial law and ordered military action against Svobodnaya Rossiya as clashes between loyalists and coup members clashed in the capital city. Shortly after 2200 that evening, a force of approximately 1,000 Gradoslavian troops and tanks entered Svobodnayan territory, moving swiftly ahead of supply lines in an uncoordinated, agressive attack. The garrison of the Svobodnayan 5th Red Guards Infantry Division, consisting of rifles and artillery, in the city of Sovet'sk was quickly encircled and fought to break out for the next several hours, losing 22 to casualties. Attack aircraft from naval and air force fields in Kaliningrad about 15 minutes away flew continual missions against the invaders, but were initially hamered by cloud cover and the enemy's swift advance, both of which made friend-or-foe distinction risky. Air attack operations ceased at 0330 on 10 August, though fighter aircraft continued to conduct patrols. Battle of Chornye Ridge At approximately 0430 on 10 August, the 5th Red Guards Infantry broke encirclement on the southwest sector of Sovet'sk after conducting a lengthy artillery barrage. Detachments left the city on improvised armored vehicles to establish contact with the 8th Red Guards Cavalry armor and command personnel of the 2nd Red Air Force Regiment, which reached engagement range at approximately 0515. Artillery barrages from the encircled city and fresh troops in the hills to the southwest continued over the next several hours as the 8th Cavalry and 2nd Air Force Regiment readied. At 0730, attack aircraft of the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Air Force Regiments under Col. Oleksandr Vostok made runs against exposed enemy armor and vehicles on the northern pincer of the Gradoslavian army, inflicting minor damage and light casualties. Shortly thereafter, the main force of the 8th Cavalry pushed north into the southern city limits while the city garrison swept southeast to meet them. Civilian evacuations began en masse at this time from the city centre and suburbs. Occasional house-to-house fighting and shelling continued as the Red Army solidified its hold on the southern half of the city. The northern Gradoslavian pincer moved south, forcing the Red Army garrison to fall back south; the withdrawing troops opted not to create barricades or sabotage facilities. Fighting continued in the city and to its east until approximately 2100. Sovet'sk Offensive The 8th Cavalry, now supported by 1st and 2nd Red Guards Infantry Divisions, were regrouped in the hills south of the city by 2200. Almost exactly 24 hours after the initial incursion, air strikes resumed in full strength against the Gradoslavian army occupying the city center and northern suburbs, decimating their forming supply train to the north. In Operation Meadowlands, the Red Army's ground force task force, codenamed Katyusha, under the field command of Col. Vladimir Potemkin, swept around the eastern half of the city and struck the north Gradoslavian pincer on its right flank. The defenders were caught almost completely unprepared by the ground assault, which came in beneath covering artillery and rocket fire and close air support. The Red Army sustained 36 casualties in the movement, two of them in the Air Force after a Yakovlev two-seat fighter of 15 Squadron suffered a mechanical failure. The operation, which was the peak of confrontation during the conflict, resulted in approximately 350 casualties in the Gradoslavian contingent, which then made a full withdrawal to the border over the next several hours, abandoning equipment and resources. The Katyusha task force pursued the retreating army to within a kilometer of Gradoslavia proper. Small pockets of resistance remained in the city center, and house-to-house fighting continued until 0730 the following morning. Resolution Just after 1100 on 10 October, supporters of President Ilyushin recaptured government buildings in an organized action consisting of police, loyal military, and the general populace. The recognized government was considered in power by 1400, and signed an immediate ceasefire withdrawing troops; the commanding officers responsible for carrying out the attack were jailed. The Gradoslavian government and their allies helped to fund rebuilding of the city of Sovet'sk; fair political relations were reestablished, though information regarding the event in Gradoslavian records is unavailable, as the nation of Gradoslavia has recently ceased to exist. In Svobodnaya Rossiya, the conflict is popularly known as "Red Leaves", named after its occurrence in autumn. While it lasted just over 48 hours, it is considered by the government and public to be a defining moment of Soviet courage and military skill, and is represented by a single black star added to the right side of the national colors, battle flags and naval ensigns. The Kursk Nuclear Power Station accident thumb | right | The Kursk Nuclear Power Station in operation.A recent fire in reactor 2 at the Kursk Nuclear Power Station in early October of 2009 resulted in a Site Area Emergency declaration and a mandatory civil evacuation of a 6-kilometer radius around the plant. Located southwest of the capital of Kaliningrad, the facility is operated jointly by the state government and SynEnergia, a public electrical cooperative. The emergency has not been classified as a disaster or international emergency of any kind. The plant dates from the 1970s, consisting of 4 former Soviet RBMK (also Реактор Большой Мощности Канальный), or "high power channel type" graphite-moderated reactors, the same type of reactor involved in the Chernobyl accident. In order to accomodate prevention a similar disaster, the plant, deactivated and without fuel in the reactors, was completely overhauled and upgraded with modern safety features and a full containment structure in the spring of 2009. After the first shipments of uranium fuel arrived in May of 2009, each reactor and its operational equipment underwent several periods of low-power testing and a battery of inspections over the next month. The reactors began ramping up to 70% power, the maximum recommended, on 6 July. The accident began shortly before 0230 on 2 October. An abnormal rise in temperature was reported by thermocouples in the northwest reactor, No. 2, in the fuel rod assemblies. Radiation detecting equipment registered levels higher than normal at various locations in the containment chamber, and by 0300 a state of emergency had been declared. It was established that the graphite blocks in the reactor had ignited due to a brief cooling pump fault, and that the uranium fuel rods were burning, causing hot radioactive graphite, uranium and byproducts to circulate inside the reactor. All four reactors on-site were immediately SCRAMed and shut down; emergency coolant systems were activated. A mandatory civil evacuation was ordered at 0345 as the fire continued inside the reactor. At 0430 operators began introducting oxygen-inhibiting chemical agents to the reactor to prevent the material from flashing into steam and possibly causing an explosion; after 3 hours, temperatures began to fall as the fire was extinguished. The Site Area Emergency was lifted at 1530 in the afternoon of the same day. After preliminary hearings and investigations, the operators on duty during the third shift have not been found responsible for the incident, as it appears to be have been "due to an unforeseeable mechanical failure". Reactors 2 and 4 remain shut down, and 1 and 3, running on an entirely separate support system, resumed half-capacity service at 35% power on 19 October. Non-operations related civilian traffic is still not permitted into the area. The Soviet Union On 21 October 2009, Svobodnaya Rossiya submitted its support for the Soviet Union's new constitution, ending an era of loose ad-hoc membership in the alliance and bringing about official status as a member state, creating more opportunities for cooperation in economic, developmental and military capacities. The state constitution has been changed, including amendments for massive governmental, public and military reorganization to accomodate the needs of the parent state. Revisions prepared in advance of the official entry into the alliance were approved by the General Council and will take begin taking effect Monday, 26 October. Government Under the 23 October 2009 revision of the constitution, the state government consists of two primary branches, executive and legislative, the administration of the Red Army, and the state security service Agency for National Defense (also Агентство Национальная оборона). Executive branch At the head of the executive branch is the Office of the Commissar. Reporting, but not subordinate to the Commissar are the seven directors of the Departments of Security, Justice, Education, Interior, Development, Foreign Affairs, Culture, and Finances. The two officers of most superior rank of the Army and Air Force report and are subordinate to the Office of the Commissar and participate in these cabinet meetings. Ambassadors and delegations are part of the Department of Foreign Affairs, though they also report directly to the Office of the Commissar outside of cabinet meetings. The executive branch technically also contains the Red Army Command, as the Commissar is considered the Commander of the Red Army, above the two individual commanders-in-chief. The Red Army is covered in more detail in "Military". Legislative branch The General Council is the sole legislative body at the state government level. It meets in the Kaliningrad Administrative Complex's secure chambers, and consists of one house of 150 freely-elected representatives from various districts, divided by population; initial elections are held every other year on the last Thursday of September, and runoffs are held if a candidate does not attain more than 50% of the initial vote in their district. The General Council convenes Thursday-Tuesday for two weeks, beginning with the last Thursday of every other month. Council members are permitted to send a page in their absence to vote if they are required elsewhere or otherwise unable to attend, though pages may not submit legislation; therefore member attendance is considered basically mandatory except in times of crisis or illness. Individual committees for the resolution of national issues, or panels for internal investigation, may be appointed for periods up to 60 days to investigate specific situations or national issues by a vote of at least 75%, or 113, of the council. This requirement prevents unnecessary spending and distraction, but also prevents the resolution of issues from being delayed if only a small percentage of councillors abstain or vote against. The Council also confirms the top two positions from each of the departments, which are Director of the Department and Secretary to the Director of the Department. Promotions or appointments to these positions are internal to the organization itself. Individual departments The state government also has seven departments that are subordinate to the General Council and report to the Office of the Commissar. ; Security : Maintains classified records and information regarding security clearances, creates immigration policies, conducts special criminal investigations, operates anti-terrorism units. Serves as liaison between the Agency for National Defense and other government entities. Alexsandr Volkov is the current Director. ; Justice : Operates the state courts system, the highest court being the National Judicial Court of Svobodnaya Rossiya, and which hears constitutional cases and disputations of the legality of policies, in addition to hearing cases regarding terrorism and espionage. Does not hear appeals from lower courts. Establishes regulations for local and district courts, and maintains birth and marriage records for individuals. Nikolai Simonov is the current Director. ; Education : Maintains public secondary schools, colleges, and universities, and provides lodging as needed for students in post-secondary education; jointly operates two military academies with the Red Army. Also manages educational regulations and standards for private institutions. Evgeniy Sokolov is the current director. ; Interior : Manages government- and volunteer-operated police, fire and rescue services, operates state parks, monuments and recreational facilities, and administrates the State Emergency Administration and the recently founded Committee of the Environment. Anton Korolev is the current Director. ; Development : Works with public cooperatives to maintain utilities, engineers and constructs roads, railways, and airports, and is responsible for contracting state projects. Aleksy Dzikiewicz is the current Director. ; Foreign : Affairs Operates embassies, liasons, and delegations to alliances. Advises other departments and the military on the state of foreign affairs, analyzes international demographics and trends, brokers treaties, arranges visits from foreign dignitaries, and manages foreign aid offers and trade agreements. Anastazja Niemeyer is the current Director. ; Culture : Operates museums, libraries, theaters, concert halls, and general venues. Oversees state-based fine arts and media. Manages copyrights and promotes distribution of culturally-significant publications. Organizes parades, holiday celebrations, festivals, and issues permits for public gatherings, including protests, and licenses broadcast and print media. Mariya Chernekov is the current Director, succeeding the late Nikodem Kasprowicz. ; Finances : Prints currency, edits and approves budgets proposed by the General Council, investigates large-scale monetary fraud and counterfeiting, manages markets and staple product distribution. Advises other departments on areas needing financial and developmental assitance. Sets the foreign exchange rate and monitors inflation. Also issues loans to individual banks, and sets credit rates for public loans from said banks. Laurent Romançon is the current director. National security service The ANO, or Agency for National Defense (also Агентство Национальная оборона) serves as the state security organization, dealing in intelligence, counter-intelligence, and anti-terrorism; also maintains trained agents to protect government figures of interest. The Agency has a large analytical department to determine threats by observing patterns in foreign relations and publishes reports to be submitted to the General Council and Office of the Commissar for consideration when making foreign policy. Some of these reports are released for public dissemination for educational purposes. Agency spokespersons have stressed that when dealing with internal affairs, the ANO has no authority to directly confront, arrest or otherwise detain civilians or foreign nationals except in circumstances of imminent or observed terrorist or espionage-related activities. The Department of Security's investigative unit maintains the sole authority to confront, arrest and otherwise detain civilians based on criminal charges or suspicion of terrorist plots, and may grant this authority to the ANO only on a temporary basis in times of severe crisis. Once arrested or otherwise detained, persons must be surrendered to the Department of Security for processing and eventual trial in the National Judicial Court system. Natasha Nikolaevna Mikutin is the current Director of the ANO. Military The Red Army Command is based in the capital city of Kaliningrad, and inherited much of the military infrastructure in-place; Kaliningrad Oblast used to be the most heavily militarized area of the Russian Federation. It was the headquarters of the former Soviet Baltic Military District. Kaliningrad also functions as the headquarters of the Soviet Baltic Fleet, circled by Chernyakhovsk (air base), Donskoye (air base) and Kaliningrad Chkalovsk (naval air base). The national military maintains approximately 4,250 regulars across the Red Army and Red Army Air Force, and comprises 7 percent of the Soviet Union's military might. A small naval developing naval and marine detachment is currently under the command of the Red Army while provisions for a new branch are pending in the General Council. Svobodnaya Rossiya is currently seeking a nuclear arsenal, which the administration "feels necessary as a deterrent with which to protect the people". Ongoing development of a deliverable weapon is under the management of the Red Army Special Nuclear Engineering Sector. Political affairs are managed by the General Staff of the Red Army, which meets in the Kaliningrad Administrative Complex's north wing, and consists of the heads of individual armies and the air force under commanders-in-chief Army Marshal K.D. Rychenko and Air Force Marshal G.A. Lazutkin. Commencement of military operations must be ordered by the Commissar, and personnel may not be involved in an external conflict for longer than 30 days except by approval of the General Council. The military operates independently of the rest of the Soviet Union as per the state constitution, and maintains its own command structure. Primarily composed of light infantry supplemented by armor and light artillery, special weapons and snipers, experineced engineers and close air support, the forces are designed for mutual operations and unconventional warfare. Sudden movements and nonstandard attack patterns were demonstrated in the Red Leaves Conflict. The Army and Air Force are considered to be extremely well-developed and trained, despite lacking some technological improvements and incomplete modernization. The armed forces have been estimated to be one-quarter more effective than an average military of the same size. Similarly, the upper commands of both forces have been praised for their efficiency and careful planning during disaster emergencies and military conflict. Geography, climate, and environment Geography thumb | right | The Pregolya River upstream of its navigable length.The state is based around the capital city of Kaliningrad, located at the mouth of the navigable Pregolya River/Pregel River, which empties into the Vistula Lagoon, an inlet of the Baltic Sea. Sea vessels can access Gdańsk Bay/Bay of Danzig and the Baltic Sea by way of the Vistula Lagoon and the Strait of Baltiysk. Khrabrovo Airport is located 24 kilometers (15 mi) north of Kaliningrad, and operates as a civil and military airfield providing international and in-alliance air travel aboard the state fleet, Aeroflot. Devau Airport exists within city limits for light general aviation service to other small in-state airfields. Both airfields are open to commercial and foreign traffic, and Kaliningrad is also home to several explicitly military airbases. The coastal land is generally low-lying and hilly, rising into steppe-like plains further inland; there are large expanses of unpopulated forest to the southeast. Multiple rivers and lakes are located throughout the state. Climate Proximity to the Baltic Sea provides a moderated climate, allowing the agricultural industry to produce grains, tubers and various livestock. Measurable precipitation occurs 12 days out of every month and averages about 72cm (28 in.) yearly. Summers are warm to very warm, with an average high temperature of 22°C (73°F). Winters are moderately cold, with an average low of 3.5°C (25°F). Kaliningrad's ports remain mostly ice-free year round. Environment The environment is considered clean and mostly pollution-free, as technology has provided sound methods of mass transportation and industrial waste disposal. However, the southern quarter of the state suffers from higher-than-normal background radiation due to recent nuclear conflicts between nearby nations. Certain susceptible zones are under supervision and may be subject to restrictions on material exports to other areas. A zone around the currently partially-inoperative Kursk Nuclear Power Station is also subject to these restrictions and is off-limits to civilian traffic. The Interior Office's Committee of the Environment has made a statement that "hopes are high to reopen the area" as soon as it is determined the accident has no potential to harm to the environment, persons, or natural resources in the zone. Foreign relations Svobodnaya Rossiya is the most senior state of the Soviet Union, having been the first and founding member state as of 8 October 2008. Under request from other member states, particularly Decronia, an official pledge of support for the Soviet Union's new constitution, effective immediately, was signed by the General Council and submitted to the alliance on 21 October 2009. Trade and Diplomacy Several ongoing trade agreements, exchanging exports of pigs and clean water for lead, gems, marble, rubber, sugar, and wine, provide both civilian and military supplies, further aiding standards of living and national security. The Department of Foreign Affairs is seeking agreements to import lumber to aid infrastructure development, and uranium to support the state's civilian and military needs. Svobodnaya Rossiya does not maintain treaties with other nations and alliances, and is party to all parent treaties signed by the Soviet Union. Economy thumb | right | A 10-rouble coin adopted from the Soviet Union.The economy of Svobodnaya Rossiya is considered to shift between socialist and command as need dictates. The state of the economy is governed by the General Council's Committee on Economic Affairs, which manages the exchange rate, the printing of currency, and economic quotas. Public markets The people generally have financial freedom, meaning there is currency that can be spent in privately-owned stores; however, products and services are subject to regulations and the possibility of government control in times of war or economic uncertainty. Some products may be in limited quantities due to governmental requirements. The public may also purchase "stock" in government-run industries, the largest of which are Farm Bureau Collective, which supplies and buys from individually-owned farms, Auto-Bloc, which manufactures civilian and service vehicles, and Spartak Technological Manufacturing, which is considered a defense contractor, but also has many distinct divisions in pharmaceuticals, computing, and telecommunications that exist under separate names. The average person is subject to an approximately-flat 25% tax on income, which has been cause for some unhappiness among the populace; however, it is generally accepted that the high tax rate is balanced out by the high-tech job market (which provides services and manufacturing for other nations at a relatively strong profit margin) and a low cost of living. Government services Persons may opt for government healthcare or an amount of financial assistance if they choose to go to private practices and specialists. Most emergency, university and general hospitals are state-owned. Civil services are also funded in whole or part by the state government, including police, fire and rescue squads, though all are operated on a local level. Volunteer fire and rescue squads are common. There are state-run welfare services available to the infirm, elderly or otherwise unable to provide for themselves; eligibility requirements remain strict to prevent misuse of the system. In addition to general welfare, pensions for the elderly begin at the age of 65 or at retirement, whichever is earlier; these pensions are subject to the cost of living. Education The state educational system, under the Department of Education, operates local primary and secondary schools; there are a few colleges and universities, most notably the State Technical University in Kaliningrad. Svobodnaya Rossiya's most popular schooling fields include computer science, engineering, pure sciences and mathematics. Classes are taught at all levels in Russian. Privately owned schools, colleges and universities also exist, though these are audited on performance yearly and are unlikely to receive government educational grants. Homeschooling is permitted but not encouraged out of interest for social development. Grammar and secondary schools are based upon the English school system. Students begin formal first-year education when they are age 5 by September 1, attending a local grammar school until year 6, or age 10. Grammar schools operate from 9 AM to 3 PM, Monday through Friday, and take various holidays in addition to a long summer break and a two-week winter break in December. All students passing each of their first 6 years (failing a year results in retesting during the summer and repeat years as necessary) are automatically accepted to local secondary schools, beginning with year 7. Mid-year and final exams are administered for each class yearly, and optional post-secondary entry exams begin in year 12, and advanced students or those otherwise bound for continued education may enter a special preparatory school for their year 13. Secondary schools operate on the same schedule as grammar schools. Most colleges and universities operate in two 4-month semesters over 3 or 4 years depending on the area of study or chosen future profession. Students will generally take 18 weekly classroom hours in lectures and laboratory; mid-semester and final exams account for an average 20% of students' marks. Certification-only and non-degree classes are offered by most of these institutions to the general public as well. The government does not have a ban list on materials distributed in schools so long as they are a part of the curriculum and do not violate school ethical codes. Most state grammar and secondary schools and a percentage of post-secondary institutions also have uniform codes. Culture The most common demographic is Russian, followed by German, Polish, Baltic, Scandinavian, and Swiss. The most prevalent of religions is Judaism, followed by atheism, Christianity, and various pagan faiths. There are three national languages, Russian, German, and Polish, though many are spoken, and print and broadcast media are found in just as many. However, government signage and official documents are in Russian unless a special case requiring a different or secondary language is presented, such as in regions where the populace is primarily non-Russian-speaking, or an official translation is preferable to later misinterpretation, such as in the constitution and its amendments. Attractions The capital of Kaliningrad, accounting for much of the state's urban area, has the highest concentration of historical and cultural attractions - multiple museums, theaters, monuments, parks and other places of interest. Music and Theater right | thumb | The Kaliningrad Philharmonic.The capital is home to the Kaliningrad State Philharmonic Orchestra in the the former Catholic Church of the Holy Family of Königsberg, built in 1907. Though the original building was destroyed during The Great Patriotic War (World War II), it was rebuilt and is known regionally for good acoustics. The orchestra performs the national anthem and marches at parades and ceremonies held by the state government, holds concerts, and regularly records classical and neoclassical music for distribution. The orchestra is sometimes augmented by the Red Army Choir, folk instrumentalists, or features popular musicians. The city's theater program is housed in the Königsberg theater, which was opened in 1910. The building was rebuilt after the war using earlier plans for the theater and opened in 1960. The colonnade in front of the entrance was modeled after the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. Architecture thumb | right | The historic Königsberg Cathedral in Kaliningrad.Architecture across the state varies from the old, including traditional Russian, German and Polish styles, which can be found in existing and new buildings, through Soviet modernism, and in some locations more postmodern Western styles. In Kaliningrad itself, the original city centre currently consists of parks, broad avenues, a square on the site of the former Königsberg Castle, and only two buildings: the House of the Soviets, roughly on the site of the former Castle, and the restored Königsberg Cathedral on the Kneiphof island (now "Kant Island" after Immanuel Kant). The new city centre is concentrated around Victory Square where The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, consecrated in 2005, is located. right | thumb | A traditional wooden house.Other landmarks are the Stock Exchange building, various churches, and the remaining city gates. In counter-clockwise order these gates are: the Sackheim Gate (German: Sackheimer Tor), King's Gate (German: Königstor), Rossgarten Gate (German: Rossgärter Tor), Attack Gate (German: Ausfallstor), Railway Gate (German: Eisenbahntor), Brandenburg Gate (German: Brandenburger Tor), and Friedland Gate (German: Friedländer Tor). The Wranger tower also remains as a reminder of the former Königsberg city walls. Museums Kaliningrad has many museums. A few examples are the Immanuel Kant museum on Kneiphof Island, the Museum of History and Arts, which still has parts of the Prussia collection of local archaeological finds, and an eight-room art gallery. A retired Foxtrot-class submarine operates in good weather as a museum of the Soviet and Svobodnayan navies. The Kaliningrad Arboretum was formerly a zoo that originally opened in the 19th century, and is now publicly open for recreational and relaxation activities. Monuments Also notable is the Soviet Cosmonaut monument, honoring Kaliningrad cosmonauts Alexei Leonov, Yuri Romanenko and Alexander Viktorenko. Other statues and monuments include the statue a statue of Tsar Peter the Great, "Mother Russia", and the Monument of the 1200 Guardsmen. Several war and political monuments also exist outside of urban areas, including several to the Great Patriotic War and one more recently laid to the Red Leaves conflict, are found on historic battlefields. Some areas of Kaliningrad and the surrounding suburbs remain damaged from British bombing and subsequent fires during the 1944-1945 Battle of Königsberg. Cuisine Kaliningrad also boasts a large variety of breweries, pubs, restaurants, and cafés, serving traditional and modern food and drink based in Russian, German, Polish, ethnic Jewish, and American origins, in addition to specialty restaurants from other cultures and a large selection of bakeries, confectionaries and chocolatiers. Holidays The national holiday of independence is held every 27 September, and is considered a federal holiday; employees of government functions and most businesses are given leave on this day or the nearest workday. Victory Day, celebrating the end of the Great Patriotic War, is held on 9 May and similarly affects economic and government operations. A variety of non-sanctioned holidays are celebrated by various demographics in religion and cultural background, causing pronounced economic effects in regions of diverse populations. Media Svobodnaya Rossiya has several state-owned television and radio networks, which broadcast news, sports, entertainment, and general television including comedies, dramas and educational programming. The Soyuz Gazeta, the national Russian-language newspaper, has been running since January of 2009, and includes politics, business, entertainment and educational articles, in addition to serialized stories, cartoons and editorials. There approximately 13 non-state television channels and 6 broadcast music or mixed radio stations with operating permits in the state. Imported film sales have long prevented a stable Svobodnayan movie industry, although independent films and documentaries are popular among young and middle-aged adults, and some local acting talent has been featured at home and abroad. Domestic music sales are gradually rising, primarily in the symphonic rock and pop genres. Sport In addition to interscholastic sports teams, there are two professional football teams, FC Soyuz and FC Kaliningrad, that have recently gained recognition in international leagues and are now eligible for continental competitions in the 2010 season. Other popular sports and recreational activities include hiking, ultimate Frisbee, hockey, hunting, cricket, lacrosse and gymnastics. No athletes have yet participated in the Olympic Games, and are unlikely to do so in 2010, and the state has made public no plans regarding national teams in any international sport. Sister Cities * Norfolk, Virginia, USA * Sweden Kalmar, Sweden * Mexico City, Mexico * Groningen, Netherlands * Klaipėda, Lithuania * Šiauliai, Lithuania * Cork, Ireland * Aalborg, Denmark Category:Soviet Union Category:Good Nation Pages